ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Microbe and Virus Interactions with Plants
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2025.1623463
This article is part of the Research TopicSymbiotic Interactions in Microbial-facilitated Vegetation Restoration and Agricultural ManagementView all 12 articles
Ecological effects of B. subtilis C3 in kiwifruit rhizosphere soil and its prevention and control against root rot disease
Provisionally accepted
- 1Zhengzhou Fruit Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, zhengzhou, China
- 2College of Horticulture, Henan Agricultural University, zhengzhou, China
- 3Zhongyuan Research Center, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences,, Xinxiang, China
- 4College of Landscape Architecture and Art, Henan Agricultural University, zhengzhou, China
- 5College of Forestry, Henan Agricultural University, zhengzhou, China
- 6Zhongyuan Research Center, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xinxiang, Henan, China, Xinxiang, China
- 7College of Life Science, Northwest A&F University, Xianyang, China
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As the world's largest producer of kiwifruit, China faces significant yield and quality losses due to the widespread occurrence of kiwifruit root rot. To explore alternative biological control strategies for kiwifruit root rot, this study isolated eleven fungal isolates from diseased kiwifruit roots and identified Fusarium solani as the primary pathogen. Additionally, a biocontrol strain, Bacillus subtilis C3, was isolated from the rhizosphere of healthy kiwifruit and shown to significantly inhibit pathogen growth. The B. subtilis C3 strain effectively controls root rot via multiple mechanisms, including direct antagonism, secretion of antimicrobial proteins, promotion of seedling growth, and induction of plant defense enzymes. In pot and field trials, C3 treatment increased root fresh weight by 84.1%, enhanced root SOD and APX activities by 45.7% and 38.2%, respectively, and reduced disease severity. Moreover, C3 improved rhizosphere soil microbial diversity of the Rhizosphere, with the Shannon index increasing from 3.0 to 3.4. Unlike previous studies focusing solely on pathogen suppression, this work highlights the dual role of B. subtilis C3 in controlling root rot and restoring rhizosphere ecological function, offering a green and sustainable biocontrol strategy for kiwifruit production.
Keywords: Kiwifruit Root Rot, Fusarium solani, biocontrol, Bacillus subtilis C3, rhizosphere soil
Received: 06 May 2025; Accepted: 30 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Xu, Song, Ku, Tian, Li, Yu, Cao and Si. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Peng Si, Zhengzhou Fruit Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, zhengzhou, China
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